Ask Maxi · Bookkeeping
How do working musicians keep track of receipts?
Strings, reeds, gas, parking, sheet music, a new cable at 10 p.m. before a gig. Musicians spend money in small pieces, and small pieces are easy to lose. Ten minutes a week fixes it.
- Pick one day. Sunday night works for most players.
- Empty every pocket, gig bag and car door. Gather the paper receipts.
- Snap each one into Cadence (Add document) or a single phone album called "Receipts 2026."
- Open your bank and card apps and look for anything without a receipt. Add a one-line note: what it was and which gig or student it was for.
- Log the week's mileage: gigs, rehearsals you were paid for, lessons at a student's home, gear pickups.
- Toss the paper once it's photographed and legible.
Why it matters: a $9 pack of strings doesn't feel like much, but a year of them, plus repairs and mileage, often adds up to thousands of dollars of deductions. You can only claim what you can show.
Start this Sunday. By April you'll have the whole year in order instead of a shoebox.
Want us to handle this for you? Bookkeeping + Tax →